US Weather

What's the weather like in the USA?

The weather, because of the massive size of the country, varies greatly depending on where you are. For example you could be in the middle of a blizzard in Chicago while people are sunbathing on the beach in Miami.

Whereas most small sized countries only have one type of climate, The USA has 8 distinctly different ones.

What climates are found in the USA?

These are general guides to the different climates found in the US. For example if you you look on a world climate map you will see the southern states of America and Taiwan have the same climate but Taiwan rarely sees the extreme weather often experienced in the American south such as Tornadoes and snow storms.

Semi-arid - Regions that receive very little rainfall and are characterized by grassland. Much of the mid-west falls under this category

Humid subtropical – Hot humid summers and mild cool winters, this climate can be found in the southern states of America.

Oceanic – Found in the western regions of Washington State and Oregon in the northwest of the US. This climate features warm not hot summers and cool but not cold winters.

Mediterranean – Most of California enjoys this climate of hot dry summers and mild winters.

Humid Continental – Found in the north eastern states of America, this climate usually has warm (dark Blue) to very hot (light blue) summers but cold, often severely cold winters.

Highland – 2 areas, one, the Cascade Mountains of Washington and Oregon and the Sierra Nevada Mountains of California. The Rocky Mountains in the Midwest is the other area. Climate is cold all year round.

Tropical – Only found on the southern tip of the Florida peninsular. Here you can expect the temperature to remain hot all year round.

Desert – Nevada, Arizona and parts of California have a desert climate. It almost never rains here and scorching hot record temperatures are often recorded.

Average temperatures in major US cities

What clothes should I bring?

As mentioned above, depends where you are going. For the best advice on what kind of weather conditions to expect and what clothes to bring to the USA, ask your local GetSet centre.